Most of us have grown up with the idea that whiter whites (and brighter colors)
mean cleaner clothes. We continue to use chlorine products with abandon to whiten
and to disinfect. We write on white paper and bathe in and drink chlorinated water. After all,
who wants bacteria- infested water? In our society, chlorine is ubiquitous-and so
are its side effects. In fact, the long-term residual effects from chlorine are becom-
. ing such a health hazard that the American Public Health Association is urging
the American paper industry to stop using chlorine. The U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) has found dioxin (a toxic byproduct of chlorine) to be 300,000 times
more potent as a carcinogen than DDT

Healthy & Natural speaks with Stephen Ashkin, director of product development
and environmental affairs at Seventh Generation, a manufacturer of green, non-toxic
cleaning products. Although he has a degree in chemistry, Ashkin gained most of his
practical knowledge and experience through direct contact in the chemical industry.
He literally grew up in the laboratory of his parent's cleaning products manufacturing
company. Ashkin chaired the American Society for Testing and Materials' task force
that wrote the national cleaning standard for commercial and institutional buildings.
He has also chaired President Clinton's Green Chemistry Challenge Task Force. Ashkin
is acting advisor for a number of EPA programs including the Indoor Environment Division.
He has published numerous articles on environmentally preferable products and is
a very popular conference speaker.

Q: Does chlorine occur naturally?

Typically chlorine does not normally occur in the environment except as a yellow
gas on rare occasions. It's a manufactured substance produced through an industrial
process. An electrical current is passed through salt water producing chlorine and
caustic soda.

Q: Is chlorine very toxic?

This is where this topic gets very interesting. Many people argue that chlorine
is basically safe-that it breaks down into harmless salt and water. Well, that's
true-in a laboratory test tube under very controlled conditions. The real issue is
not just how toxic chlorine itself is but how the unintended byproducts of chlorine
(organochlorines and dioxins) remain in the environment. They are persistent in the
environment; they do not break down readily and therefore bio-accumulate.

Q: Is there a chlorine pollution problem?

One of the largest uses of chlorine is in the paper industry. Chlorine is first
used to break down the lignan that holds the wood fibers together. Then chlorine
is used to bleach the paper to make it white. The effluent or wastewater containing
dioxins and other organochlorines are then dumped into streams and waterways. These
ingredients are highly toxic and carcinogenic. Once in the waste stream, they come
into contact with other organic materials and surfactants and combine to forn a host
of extremely toxic organic chemicals.

A chain of events occurs: The water becomes polluted; the fish become contaminated;
animals eat the fish and people eat the contaminated animals and fish. This can create
a very serious health problem; the dioxins and other toxic chemicals, when consumed,
accumulate in the fatty tissues. These contaminants are also hormone disrupters because
they mimic estrogen. The EPA has observed and documented hormonal imbalance, suppressed
immune systems, reproductive infertility and alterations in fetal development of
animals. In viewing the big picture, these factors are perhaps the most

frightening results from the widespread use of chlorine.

Q: How widespread is chlorine contamination?

It is so widespread that it would be difficult to find any human being who does
not have detectable levels of dioxin in his/her blood.

While we know that chlorine is a substantial environmental problem caused by the
paper industry, household bleach and cleaners containing chlorine also pose a serious
health risk. For instance, in 1997, 217,989 calls to the Poison Control Center concerned
household cleaners. Of those calls, 54,453 were about chlorine bleach and 7,570 were
for chlorine disinfectants. So, that means that 28.4 percent of all calls were related
to poisonings by chlorine products. What's even more important, most of those calls
were about children under 6 years old.

Q: What can happen if these chemicals get into our bodies?

Our bodies are very good at metabolizing many things. Through special enzymes,
our bodies are able to rid themselves of many environmental toxic substances that
we come into contact with daily. However, dioxins (and other organochlorine compounds)
aren't included. Even if we are exposed to very low levels, dioxins remain in the
body and accumulate.

The EPA is now saying that this is soon to become a major health risk problem.
The cumulative effects of dioxin in humans have been linked to birth defects, cancer,
reproductive disorders and immune system breakdown.

Q: Should chlorine be used in our public water supply?

The alternative question would be, should we drink contaminated water? The answer,
of course, would be no. It's very important that our water is sanitized. Years ago,
there were very few alternatives. However, today, while chlorine is a very effective
(and cheap) sanitizer, many scientists are recognizing some serious side effects
from chlorine. Today, our technology is getting to the point where, I hope, we will
look into a better means of sanitizing our drinking water. This will not be easy
because one of the biggest advantages (and ultimately the biggest disadvantage) of
using chlorine is the fact that chlorine doesn't break down. Water can be treated
with chlorine at the filtration plant and 10 miles away the chlorine is persistent
enough to remain in the water and pipes when it reaches the home. There exist many
other ingredients that are good sanitizers, but they break down quickly, and the
water would become contaminated by the time it reaches someone's home.

We may have a problem if we need to sanitize via a chemical additive. It becomes
a sort of oxymoron: chemicals that are persistent also tend to be toxic. The ultimate
solution may be to have home-based water filtration/sanitizing systems. This would
eliminate the problem of trying to prevent hundreds of miles of pipes, installed
a hundred years ago, from contaminating the water.

Q: Are there safe, effective alternatives to chlorine as a bleaching agent
and disinfectant?

Absolutely! Primarily, hydrogen peroxide is available to the paper industry and
to the soap industry as a bleaching agent. Another new technology uses ozone. Other
non-chlorinated household cleaning products, readily available to the consumer, achieve
the same bleaching and disinfecting results as chlorine but are nontoxic.

I don't understand why anyone would want to use chlorine products anyway. Chlorine
is a respiratory irritant and when mixed with other common household products, it
gives off a toxic gas.

Q: What can we do to make a difference?

We could request and purchase processed chlorine-free paper, not just in writing
paper but in paper towels, napkins, tissues, and toilet paper. It's a vote for our
environment and our health. It may seem to be a small thing, but collectively it
really can make a substantial difference.

We need to realize that the technology in the chemical industry has changed as
dramatically as in the computer industry. We no longer need to use harmful substances
simply because they worked for our grandparents. The technology in the chemical industry
is allowing us to replace many of these toxic ingredients with others that are not
only nontoxic but have renewable resources and many environmental benefits.

It's a major educational process for consumers to understand that they, through
their buying choices, can make a difference. Did you know that only about 20 percent
of shoppers buy their household products in natural food stores? What that says to
me is that while consumers recognize the importance of buying supplements and organic
foods, they don't recognize the same environmental and health benefits associated
with buying chlorine-free paper and other non-toxic cleaners.

Chlorine Facts

Dioxin, a chemical byproduct of the manufacturing of chlorinebleached paper, is
believed to be the single most carcinogenic chemical known to science.

When you open the door of your dishwasher after washing, toxic volatized chlorine
from dish detergent and tap water is released into the air.

Thanks to chlorine pollution, Americans ingest a daily amount of dioxin that is
already 300 to 600 times greater than the EPA's so-called "safe" dose.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has found dioxin to be 300,000 times
more potent as a carcinogen than DDT.

Dioxin has been linked to endometriosis, immune system impairment, diabetes, neurotoxicity,
birth defects, decreased fertility, and reproductive dysfunction in both women and
men.

Studies show that 40-70 percent of the dioxin in bleached coffee filters can leach
into your coffee; dioxin found in paper milk cartons also leaches into the milk you
drink.

Cancer-causing chemicals like chlorine found in many household products such as
coffee filters, disposable diapers, paper towels, and bathroom tissue are readily
absorbed through the skin.